With 79.5 points, the Wisconsin Men’s Swimming and Diving Team finished 16th at the 2004 NCAA Championships March 25-27 at the Nassau County Aquatics Center in Long Island, NY.
“We did a lot of things really well at this meet,” said head coach Eric Hansen. “We didn’t get everything we wanted to accomplish, but overall I was really proud of the effort of the guys. They’ve achieved a lot this year and the process by which they accomplished it is what I’m most proud of.”
Wisconsin held 13th place after two days of competition before slipping three spots with a poor showing the final day. Adam Mania was the only Badger to race on the final day of competition, finishing fourth in the 200-meter backstroke consolation final. Mania finished in 1:56.36 to take 13th place overall in the event.
With his 13th place finish, Mania earned his third career individual honorable mention All-America honor. The honor was his second of the 2004 Championships, after the junior standout placed 12th in the 100-meter backstroke on the second day of competition.
The Badgers’ 400-meter freestyle relay team of Dale Rogers, Matt Marshall, Eric Wiesner and Mania was Wisconsin’s only other group to reach the final day of competition. After narrowly missing a spot in the final with a strong performance in the preliminary round, Rogers and company placed fifth in the consolation final, finishing in 3:17.22 to take home 13th place overall. The Badgers stood in second place after the first three legs of the race in the consolation final but could not hold their position.
Auburn ran away with its second consecutive national title, amassing an impressive total of 634 points, 256.5 points more than runner-up Stanford (377.5). Michigan was the highest finishing Big Ten team, placing fifth with 271 points. Minnesota also earned a spot in the top ten, placing ninth with 130 points.
The Badgers’ senior class earned a number of impressive accolades.
“Three of our seniors achieved first-team All-American status while Pat Torpey was honorable mention All-America,” Hansen said. “Our senior class laid a foundation and established a work ethic that will help us a great deal in the future.”
-compiled from staff reports
